Despised

Xie Wenjing's mouth twitched again. Was she really being looked down upon as a mere farmwoman by her own spoiled younger brother? What was wrong with being a farmwoman? Why would a farmwoman lack common sense?

Fine, she would not lower herself to argue with a child. At least his performance this year was decent; he hadn't cried and made a fuss about returning to Yangzhou to see their grandmother. She should be content!

Hearing his son's final remark implying that he would never pass to become the top scholar, Xie Chengjun was gnashing his teeth. Did this boy really have so little faith in him?

Even Dujuan was choked by her son's words. Why did they sound so utterly awkward?

What did he mean by saying his elder sister was like a farmwoman? What did he mean by saying his father would definitely not pass as the top scholar?

With the bumper harvest of soybeans, the farmers of the entire Li Family Shrine were beaming with smiles. Although they had reluctantly set fire to the wheat fields that were almost ready for harvest, being able to exchange them for such an abundant soybean harvest was truly an unexpected joy.

Each mu of soybeans was estimated to yield at least eight hundred catties, and even the bean stalks could be dried and used as fodder. It was an immensely satisfying outcome, entirely thanks to the decisive action of the eldest miss of the Xie family. The entire village was profoundly grateful to Xie Wenjing, this young maiden.

Without Xie Wenjing even needing to ask the village chief, the villagers spontaneously came forward to tell her that they wanted to help her family harvest the soybeans.

Xie Wenjing stood on no ceremony with them and discussed the matter with the village chief: during these days of rush-harvesting the soybeans, her family would take full charge of providing food and drink for the entire village, allowing everyone to focus completely on the harvest—which naturally included her family's own one hundred mu of soybeans.

"Very well, very well! In that case, this old man thanks the eldest miss on behalf of the entire village! Working amidst such lively spirits and sharing meals together with such bustle—it is truly joyful and animated. The village hasn't seen such liveliness in many, many years!"

Village Chief Li said with profound emotion. The eldest miss's arrangement was immensely beneficial to the whole village, enabling all the men, women, and children capable of working to go to the fields, and returning to find hot meals waiting. Naturally, this conserved labor and united the villagers' hearts. It was simply wonderful!

Although the villagers were helping to harvest the eldest miss's one hundred mu of soybeans, her contribution was by no means small. Providing food and drink for the whole village might not have seemed like much in the past.

Yet nowadays, food and drink were the hardest things to come by. Although the Crown Prince had ordered the yamen to distribute seed grain for free as an emergency measure, everyone in the village knew that this seed grain was the lifeline for the paddy fields in the second half of the year. Whatever could be spared from eating was saved.

Back covertly, weren't quite a few people in the village still eating wild vegetables and bitter herbs, foraging for wild fruits, and taking on odd jobs, all just to save an extra mouthful of seed grain to plant rice later on?

There were also many villagers who had no other choice and were forced to consume a good portion of the seed grain they had collected.

Just a few days ago, when she went into Hangzhou city, she found that many rice shops had gone out of business. The shops capable of trading in rice and flour had drastically diminished. Even among the few that remained, the prices were exorbitantly high. Ordinary common people would never buy from them; rather than purchasing such astronomically expensive rice, they might as well eat the free seed grain issued to them.

Those who could afford to spend money on such expensive rice and flour were exclusively the wealthy gentry families of Yangzhou. Yet even looking at those few open rice shops, the customers buying rice and flour were exceedingly sparse.

How had this world suddenly become so arduous?

"Eldest Miss, the villagers are farmers who grew up enduring hardship. As long as there is something filling to eat, that's enough. Don't waste that unjust money on buying outrageously expensive rice."

After pondering, the village chief still felt compelled to offer a well-meaning reminder to the eldest miss.

"Hehe, how could that do? Making the village work without feeding them well would weigh on my conscience! I'll have to trouble the village with our family's soybeans. As for the food and drink, we will take care of it these few days. Village Chief, please don't try to save money on my account!"

Naturally, Xie Wenjing had also been keeping a close eye on the prices of rice and flour in the city. Before the Crown Prince's arrival, rice and flour prices had been ridiculously high, but after he arrived, they instantly plummeted to rock bottom. Within a few days, numerous rice shops had gone bankrupt. Ordinary people stopped buying rice and instead went to collect the yamen's seed grain.

As a result, in the past few days, a few rice shops had unexpectedly hiked the price of rice—which had hit rock bottom days earlier—back up to thirty cash per catty, with flour commanding the exact same price. This left Xie Wenjing completely bewildered.

These few remaining rice shops, although open, operated with a certain casualness, indifferent as to whether anyone came to buy or not; the price was simply fixed at that rate. Among them, the Tang Family Farm Supply Shop was one of the operating ones.

Fortunately, when rice prices had plummeted instantaneously, she had also bought up a large quantity to store away, knowing all too well how ridiculously high the price of rice in Jiangnan would soar in the coming years.

With ample reserves, she naturally wouldn't let her own family starve on wild weeds to fill their stomachs alongside the villagers. Her father's health simply couldn't withstand that!

This time, inviting the villagers to help harvest her family's one hundred mu of soybeans naturally meant treating them to fragrant white rice. However, Xie Wenjing would not be foolish enough to tell the village chief that she had secretly bought and stored away vast amounts of rice and flour beforehand.

In a flurry of activity, the Li Family Shrine launched into the lively soybean harvest. This stirred up an irrepressible bitterness in the hearts of villagers from neighboring settlements: if they had acted just like the Li Family Shrine back then, wouldn't they also be reaping a bumper harvest of soybeans by now?

Even though soybeans were horse fodder, they were still far superior to tree roots and grass roots! It turned out the foolish ones weren't them, but themselves after all!

Across the entire village, regardless of gender or age, everyone capable of working the land went down to the fields. Especially on the first day of the harvest, when they were treated to the fragrant white rice prepared by the Xie family, every single villager was brimming with high spirits. They rolled up their sleeves, put their backs into it, and worked with all their might. The soybean harvest was truly underway!

"Wenbao, if you don't want to study, you can also go help the village harvest the soybeans. Plenty of boys your age in the village have gone down to the fields to help gather the beans!"

Seeing that Wenbao had been spacing out for a long time, Xie Wenjing spoke up to break his trance.

"Plenty of girls your age in the village have gone down to the fields too. Why didn't you go?" Xie Wenbao retorted.

Xie Wenjing was left speechless. Her younger brother's words made sense; she indeed could have gone down to till the fields herself. Yet such a thought had never even crossed her mind—what she had thought of instead was how to hire farm laborers.

It seemed that deep down in her bones, she was still a young lady of an aristocratic family, utterly incapable of enduring the hardship of physical labor in the fields.

"Very well then, I'll go down to the fields to check on their soybean harvesting. Would you like to come along? We can deliver the afternoon refreshments to them right about now."

Xie Wenjing felt that the villagers were truly honest and unpretentious. Although she provided them with rice, they had been working extremely hard these past few days, so she wanted to seize this opportunity to ensure they were well-fed.

Every morning, she supplied the entire village with rice porridge plus two steamed buns; at noon, two bowls of rice; and the same two bowls of rice in the evening. However, since they were engaged in heavy physical labor and the afternoon stretch was long, it would be best to supplement them with one or two steamed buns.

"I'm not going! I am certainly not going to be a farmer! If you want to play village wife, go do it yourself! I have to study, and I'm going to pass the imperial examinations to become the top scholar!"

Xie Wenbao deliberately tried to rile up his elder sister. Who told her to constantly keep her eyes on him and boss him around? Not even their parents were as strict and heartless in managing him! Hmph!

Such ambition! You stinky boy! If that's truly what you think, I won't worry anymore!

Fine! As long as you are willing to study and make progress, I'll gladly accept being a village wife!

"Qin Yu, take good care of the young master's studies and urge him not to slack off. After all, he is our future top scholar!"

Xie Wenjing used her brother's own words to provoke him further.

Qin Yu looked blankly from the eldest miss to the young master, appearing rather foolish. Could the young master really become the top scholar?

After seeing off her brother, Xie Wenjing took Mother Du, Zhihua, Meilan, Nanny Wu, and Duyue along, carrying the freshly steamed white flour buns. Old Man Li carried a shoulder pole with buckets of previously boiled water that had cooled down, and together they walked toward the villagers who were harvesting soybeans plot by plot.

"Village Chief, Grandpa Li, Uncle Li, all of you take a break and have some refreshments before continuing your work!"

Xie Wenjing called out with a warm smile to these honest, rustic villagers.

In her past life, she had never experienced such joy—it was a pride born from being trusted from the very bottom of people's hearts. In their eyes looking back at her, there was no greed and no calculation, only trust.

"Wow! Daddy, Mommy, it's big white steamed buns!" The child of Uncle Li's family nearby cried out with boundless joy. These plump, white steamed buns truly made one's mouth water!

"Grandpa, I see them too! It's big steamed buns! Grandpa, we get to eat steamed buns!" The granddaughter of Grandpa Li also cheered happily.

Without needing any instructions from the adults, the children in the village dropped the bean pods they were currently picking and came running over together, causing the villagers to smile sheepishly in Xie Wenjing's direction.

"Don't run, you'll trip!" Hearing the joy ringing in the adults' voices, Xie Wenjing felt her own heart soar uncontrollably.

The villagers had been divided into three groups: young maidens and elderly women picked the harvested soybean plants back in the village. At this stage, the soybeans were still attached to the stalks.

The strong, robust men of the village were responsible for transporting the bundled bean stalks tied up in the fields.

Another group of villagers bent low, pulling up the soybean plants entirely by their roots before binding them into bundles. Originally, the villagers had planned to use sickles to cut the bean stalks, but someone had remarked: if they cut them this way and left the soybean roots behind, would it adversely affect the subsequent planting of paddy rice?

To be on the safe side, the villagers decided it was better to uproot them entirely. Although it required far more labor, it was well worth doing.

Once all the village's soybeans had been harvested, many villagers were moved to tears. In these difficult times, being able to have soybeans as a staple food gave them a genuine sense of fulfillment.

From Xie Wenjing's one hundred mu of soybeans, a full eighty thousand catties of soybeans were reaped.

The other villagers also acquired a substantial yield of soybeans, averaging nearly eight hundred catties per mu—a figure none of them had ever anticipated.

With the soybeans secured, the villagers were able to conserve their seed grain.

Next came plowing the fields with oxen, pulling rice seedlings, and preparing to plant the paddy rice for the second half of the year.

Fortunately, the villagers of the Li Family Shrine had saved a portion of their seed grain, and for the remainder that they lacked, Xie Wenjing exchanged soybeans with Fanjing Temple to make up the shortfall for the village.

This made the villagers of the Li Family Shrine place even greater trust in Xie Wenjing, the eldest miss of the Xie family.

Meanwhile, Xie Wenjing's maternal grandfather had also hired villagers to plant the paddy rice for the second half of the year in the paddy fields they rented from Fanjing Temple.

The villagers of several villages surrounding Fanjing Temple were able to find a glimmer of survival by being hired by the Xie and Du families, making them somewhat better off than farm laborers in other regions.

As for the entire Jiangnan region, because the yamen had over-distributed seed grain during the initial disaster, a severe shortage of seed ensued when the actual planting season arrived. Furthermore, many tenant farmers dared not rent any more land, preferring to wander as vagrants or take on odd jobs rather than risk renting farmland.

This led to even more arable land in Jiangnan lying fallow.

"Your Majesty, in a region as affluent as Jiangnan, because of an imperial edict from the Crown Prince that exhausted the yamen's grain reserves, the area has been plunged into such a plight before our very eyes! So much fertile land lies abandoned, yet the soldiers on the frontline cannot even fill their bellies. This is entirely the fault of the Crown Prince's mishandling!"

General Sima Yi, forty years old, had never participated in the struggle for the succession, but he remained deeply aggrieved over the hardships faced by the soldiers at the front.

Back when the severe snow disaster struck Jiangnan, similar crises had occurred more than a decade ago. At that time, the former emperor had sent the current emperor—then a prince—to handle the disaster relief. The strategy was to encourage self-reliance, raise charitable donations from wealthy merchants, and symbolically open granaries to pacify the populace. Although it fell short and caused nearly ten thousand people to starve to death in Jiangnan, it did not compromise the following year's livelihood, nor did it affect the provisions for the soldiers resisting the enemy state.

Yet this time, although Jiangnan once again suffered a total crop failure, the Crown Prince, who went to oversee relief, ordered local yamens to throw open all their grain reserves. Consequently, when the planting season arrived, there was no official seed grain left to distribute. If things continued this way, the number of people starving to death in Jiangnan this year would likely reach tens or even hundreds of thousands!

Was this not dereliction of duty on the part of the Crown Prince? And severe dereliction at that!

"This old minister disagrees with General Sima's view! When a major disaster strikes, the people of Jiangnan have no one to pin their hopes on except the imperial court.

If the court sits by and does nothing, public sentiment will destabilize. Unstable public sentiment easily breeds chaos.

Although the Crown Prince knew the consequences of doing so, he had no choice but to act. To win the hearts of the people is to win the realm. Our Great Zhou Dynasty won the realm precisely by capturing the hearts of the people.

Although many fields in Jiangnan have lain fallow during this period, every single commoner in Jiangnan holds our Great Zhou imperial house deeply in their hearts.

The reason the Crown Prince acted thus was to ensure that all subjects of Great Zhou place their trust and loyalty in the imperial dynasty.

Furthermore, the Crown Prince did not simply wash his hands of the matter afterward. Once all the seed grain was distributed, he actively contacted various localities to find substitute seeds, helping the Jiangnan people weather the crisis."

Ren Youming, Grand Secretary of the Cabinet and Left Assistant Minister, stepped forward to firmly back the Crown Prince. Ren Youming's eldest legitimate daughter, Ren Linlin, was currently the designated Crown Prince Consort, though their wedding had not yet taken place.

"Indeed, Father. Your son spent merely ten days in Jiangnan, yet witnessed the tragic sight of numerous commoners starving to death.

Since the founding of our Great Zhou Dynasty fifty years ago, when Imperial Grandfather rose from the common ranks and raised the banner of rebellion, the fundamental cause was hunger.

When the people have nothing to eat and feel no care from the imperial court, they lose their loyalty to the court. To fill their bellies, starving masses can transform into rebellious mobs at any moment.

Although Jiangnan is suffering a severe disaster today, the disaster victims are gazing up with eager, hopeful eyes at our imperial court, and they are fully aware that the various yamens possess abundant grain reserves.

Your son had no other choice. I knew the severe consequences of such an action, which is why, immediately after taking that measure, I rushed to various regions to select alternative seed grains.

Heaven does not disappoint those who strive; your son has finally found them: sweet potatoes and corn from the nation of Rona, two crops with exceptionally high yields.

As everyone knows, for paddy rice, a harvest of seven hundred catties per mu is considered bountiful, and eight hundred catties per mu is a bumper wheat harvest.

Yet Rona's sweet potatoes can yield up to five thousand catties per mu, and corn yields at least fifteen hundred catties per mu. Such a disparity can sustain vastly more people, and even livestock.

Your son has already purchased the seedling cultivation and planting technology for sweet potatoes, and is currently having these sweet potatoes transported here. Before long, they will arrive across all parts of Jiangnan.

However, the gap in the seed grain needed across Jiangnan is simply too vast. Even after exhausting the entire fortune of the Eastern Palace, your son could only purchase a fraction of the sweet potato seeds, leaving the subsequent seedling cultivation costs and other expenses uncovered. I implore Father to grant funds in aid! I beg Father!"

As the Crown Prince spoke, he abruptly fell heavily to his knees.

"You have all heard what the Crown Prince has said, haven't you? To tell you the truth, the soldiers on the frontline lack even provisions, and my own hands are severely strapped for resources.

Since my imperial son has exhausted the wealth of his Eastern Palace, I cannot lag behind my son. Eunuch Li, starting today, cut down my personal expenses. Aside from three meals a day—just enough to eat one's fill—dispense with everything else.

Reduce the expenses of the inner palace by half as well, to support the disaster victims.

In addition, check what valuables remain in my inner treasury and take them out to sell, raising the deficient funds for the Crown Prince. The people are what matter most, after all!"

The Emperor of Great Zhou was in his forties, appearing in his absolute prime of masculine charm. Yet at this moment, his eyelids were lowered, and no one could guess the true meaning behind his words.

In fact, more than two months ago, the Emperor had said something very similar. At that time, it was to raise provisions for the frontline soldiers, but back then, the Crown Prince had stepped forward to stop the Emperor, arguing that as the sovereign of a nation, the dignity proper to the Emperor could never be diminished.

Yet today, when the Emperor spoke thus once again, who could step forward to stop him and declare that the Emperor's dignity must not be impaired? The Crown Prince?

Clearly, the Crown Prince could not. It was precisely the Crown Prince's own words that had prompted the Emperor to make this declaration.

At this moment, the Crown Prince's complexion turned somewhat pale. He had pitched his argument too high and thus cornered his Imperial Father into making such a statement. It was his own carelessness.

"That must never happen, Your Majesty! You are the sovereign of a nation, supremely dignified—how could you do such a thing? Though this old minister lacks ability, I still possess some meager savings at home, and I am willing to contribute ten thousand taels of silver to assist the Crown Prince in rescuing the disaster victims of Jiangnan.

I wonder if Minister Li of the Ministry of Revenue might show a little leniency and offer some aid to these suffering victims?"

Grand Secretary Ren Youming immediately stepped forward to voice the dissuasion the Emperor needed to hear, while simultaneously dragging Minister of Revenue Liu Yunchaos into the fray.

The Minister of Revenue was a steadfast, loyal partisan of the Emperor who refused to take sides in the succession struggle. Yet if anyone wanted to pry funds out of the outer treasury from his hands, they needed the Emperor's nod of approval.

Just now, when the Crown Prince asked the Emperor for money, although the Emperor agreed, he pointedly stated he would use funds from his own private inner treasury, without uttering a single word about the outer treasury. The implications were not hard to guess!

Since the Grand Secretary understood the Emperor's intent, he naturally dared not openly challenge the Emperor. He could only use himself as bait to drag the Minister of Revenue into the water.

Besides, he hadn't explicitly demanded that Minister Liu hand over outer treasury silver; he could frame it as taking the lead in donating his own family's wealth, leaving Minister Liu free to donate from his own household wealth as well!

"In reply to Lord Ren's words, this official's annual salary is two hundred taels of silver. At home, I have a seventy-year-old mother to support above, a daughter awaiting marriage below, and even the residence we live in is a courtyard bestowed by the Emperor—which is currently lacking a proper dowry.

Still, compared to others, we at least have food, shelter, and decent clothing. Wait a moment, let me see... ah, this jade thumb ring was left behind by my late father. I suppose I can consider this doing my utmost for the disaster zone.

This official is financially stretched to the limit, so I hope you gentlemen will excuse me. It's entirely because my family has a shallow foundation, making it impossible for me to compare with the Grand Secretary!"

Minister of Revenue Liu Yunchaos's words turned Ren Youming's complexion alternately pale and dark. What did this scoundrel mean by that? His salary was low—wasn't mine low too?

Yet I managed to pull out ten thousand taels, while he casually tossed out a modest white jade thumb ring worth a few dozen taels! Was he trying to insinuate that I took bribes and practiced graft? Did the Crown Prince acquire such vast amounts of money through graft and bribery as well?

Ren Youming's expression turned unsightly, yet at this moment, no one stepped forward to bail him out.

Naturally! If the Minister of Revenue was too poor to make a proper donation, how could those with even shallower family foundations come up with mountains of silver? Weren't they practically being accused of corruption and bribery?

If they followed Liu Yunchaos's high-profile declaration of poverty, they would lose face entirely. Was anyone in the court a fool regarding the true financial standing of each other's households? Could they be casually hoodwinked? A single misspoken word could invite disaster upon oneself.

Throughout the entire court, only Liu Yunchaos played the pauper like this, holding the court's silver while crying poverty, leaving everyone else with nothing to do but admire him. Truly untainted by corruption and keeping his hands clean of illicit wealth—who could match that feat?

This was probably the very reason the Emperor trusted him!

Realizing he had been too hasty, the Crown Prince understood he had failed to rope the court officials into the mess. Those who held onto their silver continued to clutch it tightly, including his Imperial Father.

Yet the situation in Jiangnan was hard-won; at present, his prestige in Jiangnan might even surpass his Imperial Father's, which was precisely why his Imperial Father found it inconvenient to call him to account.

If push came to shove, he would steel his resolve and play the part of the "commoner crown prince." He refused to believe he wouldn't win the backing of the officials and the hearts of all the people of Great Zhou!

As for his good eldest brother, even if he died fighting at the frontier, he could never compare to him. Daring to contend with him for grain? For silver? They clearly hadn't looked at where the hearts of the people lay!

"Father, with Grand Secretary Ren's ten thousand taels, plus the Minister of Revenue's thumb ring, your son will certainly be able to rescue more disaster victims.

Your son will devise additional means to raise charitable funds for the victims. Please set your mind at ease, Father!"

"In that case, I must trouble the Crown Prince! Those of you who have thumb rings, donate your thumb rings; those with jade hairpins, donate your jade hairpins. Eunuch Li, I will donate a hundred taels of silver myself. Can that be spared?"

Eunuch Li hastily dropped to his knees. "This slave obeys the imperial decree! A hundred taels can certainly be spared!"

Upon returning to the Eastern Palace, the Crown Prince was consumed by fury. He worked himself to the bone, yet his Imperial Father cared nothing for his toil, nor did he see the suffering of the disaster victims—all his eyes saw was that his eldest son lacked provisions! It made his blood boil!

"Your Highness, the Crown Prince Consort has arrived!" Eunuch Zhang softly reported from beside him.

"Clean me up, I will go see her!"

Hearing that the Crown Prince Consort had arrived, the Crown Prince immediately resumed his usual gentle and cultured demeanor. He guessed that the Crown Prince Consort had also come regarding the matter of silver.

However, what he lacked was certainly not silver. This time in Jiangnan, simply through rice alone, he had amassed profits exceeding several hundred thousand taels.

As for the seed grain, he must have made at least one hundred thousand taels, and with soybeans, he would undoubtedly rake in a million taels down the road.

Hmph! Father and the others wanted to raise provisions for his eldest brother? Even if they clutched their silver, they wouldn't be able to buy a single grain of rice from his hands!

Without this rice, how did they expect to win battles? A defeated general would not only be spurned by the common people but also by his own soldiers. Let's see how his Imperial Father would protect him then!

"Linlin has come?" The Crown Prince smiled as warmly as a spring breeze, leaving no trace of the resentment he harbored just moments before.

"Your Highness, I heard about what happened today. All I can do is accompany you and scatter our household wealth, as long as Your Highness is not too troubled. I am willing to become a commoner crown prince consort!"

Ren Youming's daughter, Ren Linlin, spoke with profound devotion. From childhood, she had known that the Crown Prince was her heaven; only when he fared well would she share in his fortune.

Grand Secretary Ren Youming had raised her to be worthy of the Crown Prince, instructing her in court affairs so that when she ascended to the position of Empress, she would not be completely ignorant of state matters.

A crown prince could have many concubines, but only one primary wife. If the wife could understand and assist him, she would inevitably command even greater reliance and respect from him. That was what Ren Youming believed, and it was how he had instructed his daughter.

Thus, Crown Prince Consort Ren Linlin possessed a solid understanding of state affairs and supported the Crown Prince wholeheartedly. Hearing from her father that the Crown Prince had failed to raise charitable contributions in the court, she had been furious—the Emperor was far too partial! Yet she dared not voice that thought aloud.

Hearing the Crown Prince Consort's words, the Crown Prince smiled with exceptional tenderness. Such a virtuous wife was truly of one mind and heart with him; just as he had hardened his resolve to act as a commoner crown prince, his consort was willing to stand beside him as a commoner crown prince consort.

Splendid! She was truly a woman worthy of him!

"Eldest Eunuch Li, go summon Tu Gang."

Upon returning to his imperial study and reflecting on the day's court proceedings, the Emperor suddenly gave instructions to Eunuch Li beside him.

Eunuch Li acknowledged the command and departed.

Tu Gang was the Commander of the Imperial Secret Police (Changwei)—an eunuch, yet a figure of terror for every high-ranking official. They wielded the butcher's knife against any senior official and answered solely to the Emperor.

Yet they had restrained themselves quite a bit lately, owing to a bloodbath a few years prior that resulted in the death or injury of over a hundred senior officials, all tragedies engineered by the severe torture chambers of the Secret Police.

It had all begun when an official was denounced by a Censor for corruption, leading to a chain reaction of mutual accusations that left the entire court trembling in fear, with half of the officials dragged into the Secret Police dungeons.

Truth be told, how many senior officials had truly clean hands? They simply couldn't withstand close scrutiny.

What could they do? They threw tantrums, acted shamelessly, sought death, and refused to admit guilt to the bitter end. Admitting guilt meant not only execution but eternal infamy.

Refusing to admit it, even if beaten to death by the Secret Police, preserved one's good reputation, and family property would not be confiscated. As a result, half of the senior court officials genuinely chose death or severe injury, pushing the surviving officials to collectively launch a counter-offensive that drove the Secret Police into a corner.

The Emperor had no choice but to place the blame for this fiasco squarely on the Secret Police, otherwise those officials would have splattered blood three steps deep across the court hall.

Word had it that dozens of senior officials smashed their heads together in a most spectacular display. Consequently, the Secret Police had to shoulder the primary responsibility for excessive sentencing and overly harsh interrogation.

From then on, the Emperor promised the ministers that the Secret Police would no longer handle criminal cases, which were henceforth to be tried by the Ministry of Punishments, the Court of Judicial Review, and the Censorate.

Ever since, the Secret Police had withdrawn from the view of the court officials.

"Tu Gang, what have you uncovered these past few days?"

Upon seeing the Commander of the Secret Police, the Emperor went straight to the point.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, everything in Jiangnan is somewhat bizarre. Initially, after the Crown Prince opened the granaries, many rice shops hoarding goods at high prices went bankrupt, and rice prices plummeted instantly to rock bottom.

However, low rice prices did not last long before rebounding instantly. White rice soared to as high as thirty cash per catty.

At that time, very few rice shops remained open in Jiangnan because the Crown Prince's excessive opening of granaries for disaster relief meant ordinary common people no longer needed to buy rice or flour.

Logically speaking, the few rice shops that remained open should have lowered their prices. Yet in reality, the prices of rice and flour sold by these few remaining shops were exorbitantly high.

They showed not a shred of worry, unconcerned whether ordinary people bought their goods or not. Even with sparse business, they maintained that outrageous price.

Your subject estimates that before long, those aristocratic families who had stored up plenty of rice and flour will consume their reserves, and when they can no longer hold out, they will be forced to buy grain at exorbitant prices.

Who would have thought that under such circumstances, someone could still make a massive fortune?"

Tu Gang had been dispatched by the Emperor to Jiangnan to investigate the true extent of the disaster and the state of public sentiment.

"Tell me about the Crown Prince's actions in Jiangnan." The Emperor's voice was placid.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, upon arriving in Jiangnan and seeing the disaster victims kneeling before him, the Crown Prince declared on the spot that he would not let them starve. He ordered the yamens to open granaries for relief, distributing official grain every single day that the people lacked food, until the reserves were completely exhausted.

Because of this, the people of Jiangnan felt immense gratitude toward the imperial court. Even when certain yamens were eventually left with not a single grain, and people were driven by hunger to eat grass roots and tree bark, their gratitude toward the court remained steadfast.

In some places, in certain villages, people starved to death without crying out or gathering in riots; they were simply wrapped hastily in straw mats and buried, and the yamens did not record them as having starved to death, but rather listed them as deaths by illness.

Though the seed grain reserves in all the Jiangnan yamens were completely exhausted this time, it nevertheless succeeded in conquering the hearts of the people. Especially the Crown Prince—his prestige in Jiangnan is currently exceptionally high, and the people place profound trust in him."

Tu Gang served the Emperor alone and reported the intelligence he gathered with absolute fidelity.

"Have your men estimated how many people starved to death in Jiangnan this time?" the Emperor continued.

"Not a single person starved to death, Your Majesty. However, during this period, over ten thousand people died of illness in Jiangnan—mostly the elderly, the weak, the sick, and the disabled who simply could not hold on. Even so, this figure is likely just the beginning; if subsequent grain supplies fail to arrive, the death toll from illness will surely be higher."

Tu Gang answered truthfully. Those Jiangnan yamens now enjoyed the ardent support of the local populace; as long as no one caused a disturbance, even those deaths were categorized as illnesses.

In this light, the Crown Prince could be considered to have executed disaster relief effectively, ensuring no one starved to death. Moreover, the local yamens cooperated efficiently, ensuring that not a single person starved, and thus they all scored major achievements during this massive Jiangnan disaster.

"Have your men keep a close watch everywhere. Since the Jiangnan yamens and commoners are speaking with one voice to claim the Crown Prince and the local authorities conducted relief effectively—to the extent that even those who died of starvation are logged as dying of illness—then as long as no one makes trouble later on, let the Crown Prince play his games.

Right now, my full support must go to the Prince of Wu. The adversary he faces consists of hundreds of thousands of Tatars. Over the years, if not for General Shangguan before and the Prince of Wu after, those Tatars would have long since trampled Great Zhou beneath their iron hooves. Where would we find these days of peace and prosperity?

Aside from battling them, the Prince of Wu must also construct sturdy city walls along the border to fend off their constant incursions. Ensuring those soldiers are well-fed is of utmost importance.

Have your men deployed across Jiangnan: if anyone is found hoarding massive quantities of rice and flour exceeding hundreds of thousands of catties, stubbornly refusing to sell them at the exorbitant price of thirty cash per catty, concentrate your manpower and investigate them thoroughly! Find a crime worthy of confiscating their household properties!

Any merchant who clings to their grain and refuses to sell it at a time like this harbors a heart that deserves to be executed! Show no mercy. I don't care about the process; I only want the result—we must have a sufficient quantity of rice and flour to support the Prince of Wu. Do you understand my meaning?"

The Emperor's expression grew increasingly cold. At a time when frontier-defending soldiers lacked provisions and Jiangnan disaster victims lacked food, there were still people hoarding grain and refusing to release it to stabilize market prices. One could only imagine how blackened such hearts truly were!

When that time came, they could not blame him, their Emperor, for being ruthless and confiscating their properties! The deaths of a single household would be enough to save tens of thousands of families!

At that moment, Xie Wenjing was leading the entire village in the busy work of planting the next season of paddy rice. Naturally, she would not personally roll up her trouser legs and wade into the water to plant seedlings.

There were plenty of villagers in the hamlet to help with that task; all Xie Wenjing had to do was have her nannies, maidservants, and pages prepare food for the whole village, and she had already won the boundless gratitude of the villagers.

Ever since the soybean harvest began right up to the current rice planting, everyone had been eating the white rice and flour prepared by the eldest miss of the Xie family!

Throughout this period, the villagers of the Li Family Shrine experienced an unprecedented sense of warmth and bustle. They laid aside all boundaries between their individual fields, joining forces and putting their backs into hard labor, while their food and drink were wonderfully prepared for them. Such a scene was something they hadn't witnessed in many, many years.

"Wenjing, shouldn't your third uncle and Wenfen be returning soon? I wonder if they'll pass the examinations?"

Third Aunt looked somewhat melancholic. Ever since her husband and son set off for Yangzhou to take the exams, her heart had been hanging by a thread.

Such anxiety was not something Third Aunt dared voice to the eldest brother and sister-in-law; when she spoke to her own daughter, the girl felt just as anxious as she did.

In Third Aunt's eyes, her niece Wenjing was exceptionally capable, even inspiring a sense of reliance. Though it was a bit humiliating for an aunt to lean on her niece, the feeling of reliance was genuinely there, and upon seeing Wenjing, she couldn't help but crave her reassurance.

"Third Aunt, we still have to wait for the results at this stage. They should be announced in a few days, and then Third Uncle and the others can return.

Third Aunt, whether one passes the examinations is also a matter of luck. As long as Third Uncle and the others return safely, that is the best outcome of all, isn't it?"

Xie Wenjing certainly didn't want Third Aunt clinging to desperate hopes that her husband and son would pass; high expectations only led to greater disappointment.

She harbored no illusions about her third uncle's path to becoming a juren; after all, in her past life, by the time she died, her third uncle had still not attained the rank of juren.

As for her cousin Wenfen, during a prefectural examination, he had been suspected of cheating and, before even being betrothed, committed suicide at an early age.

The road of scholarly honor was arduous indeed. Yet Xu Yuan had won the top scholar honor—one could only imagine how much hardship he had endured to achieve such distinction!

Had he participated in the examinations this time as well? Was he taking the prefectural exam now?

If he passed, he would become a scholar.

Xie Wenjing was presently pondering this when Xie Wenbao... Wait, no.

Xie Wenjing's reassuring words made Third Aunt feel somewhat ashamed of herself. She had been anxiously awaiting her husband and son's return, but deep down, she had been yearning even more for them to come back bearing successful examination results.

Moreover, upon returning to Yangzhou, Third Uncle and Xie Wenfen had not stayed at the Xie family residence, but instead rented quarters together at an inn close to the examination hall.

The examinations had concluded, and now came the waiting game. Some scholars were anxious, some relaxed, while others used the post-exam period to indulge themselves dissolutely among the courtesans of Yangzhou.

In contemporary Great Zhou, romantic, free-spirited scholars faced little negative social judgment; a man was considered fine as long as he was romantic without being crude.

Furthermore, many courtesans sold their artistry rather than their bodies, peddling elegance instead, which won them even greater adoration from scholars and students. Coupled with numerous popular poems born precisely in such settings, the scholars of Great Zhou overwhelmingly favored and pursued these accomplished courtesans.

Yet Third Uncle was certainly not one to dote on such courtesans, nor would he drag his son along to chase after them; instead, he waited anxiously with bated breath for the results to be posted.

Like his father, Xie Wenfen felt completely uncertain in his heart and grew uncharacteristically silent after the exams.

Meanwhile, Xu Yuan's mood these past few days had been intensely gloomy. This time, he had unexpectedly suffered dizziness during the examinations; though he barely managed to persevere through them, Xu Yuan dared not harbor any expectations of passing.

Yet if he couldn't even pass the scholar examinations, how could he ever become the top scholar, and how could he marry the young maiden etched in his heart?

She must be eagerly awaiting his success right now, mustn't she?

At this thought, Xu Yuan pulled out his books once more, studying in silence. From now on, every ounce of his focus must be poured into his studies; he could not afford a single distraction. He had to pass—he had to marry her!

Xu Yuan's abnormal behavior lately filled Xu Cai with unease.

Normally, once examinations concluded, people would rest for several days without looking at a book, yet her elder brother returned from the exams and studied with even greater, near-frantic vigor. It had reached the point where he held steamed buns in one hand while reading as he ate, never letting go of his books for a single moment.

Could it be that her elder brother had failed the exam? But upon returning, what he told their mother was that he had done "all right."

Xu Cai wanted to ask her brother, yet she dared not open her mouth. These days, Xu Cai lived under oppressive strain as well, praying solely for the announcement list to be posted soon.

While they waited in suspense, the Zhao family had already learned that the Xie family had fallen so low as to sell their ancestral residence and the Guangling estate.

The news of the Xie family's division had also reached their ears.

"My lord, we can no longer honor Qiu Sheng's engagement! How could a family like that ever be worthy of ours? Especially that sickly in-law of the Xie family—he is practically at death's door, and during this recent division, they were practically driven out by the Xie family's commoner branch with nothing to their names.

A family like that probably can't even scrape together a dowry. If we foolishly forge this alliance, not only will we be mocked, but we will also be dragged down by them!

That Xie Wenjing's father doesn't know how much silver he burns through on medical treatments every year. If Xie Wenjing marries into our family, whenever money is tight, she will surely siphon funds back to her maiden family in secret.

Are we members of the Zhao family a pair of fools? My lord, this marriage can no longer be delayed! Qiu Sheng performed quite well in his exams this time and has a strong chance of attaining the rank of juren.

If our son achieves that rank this time, he will become the youngest juren in all of Yangzhou, with a boundless future ahead of him. The woman worthy of marrying him in the future must at least be a noble maiden from a distinguished capital family.

We cannot wait until the results are posted to break off the engagement; we must avoid idle gossip by severing ties within these next few days."

Upon learning of the Xie family's downfall, Master Zhao's wife had been eager to break off the engagement immediately. Considering that her son's imperial examinations were imminent and he mustn't be distracted, she had forcibly reined in her impulse until now.

"I want to as well! But what excuse can we use to break it off? Qiu Sheng and that Xie Wenjing's birth characters were already matched; that cannot serve as an excuse. What pretext can we use?" Master Zhao asked, exceedingly vexed.

"My lord, as long as you are willing to break off the engagement, any excuse will do! Once a young woman has rumors swirling around her outside, she is worth nothing. Even if there are no rumors, we can simply fabricate a few for her. Even if the Xie family refuses, they won't have a choice in the matter."

A vicious glint appeared in Madam Zhao's eyes. As long as her son prospered, who cared about anyone else's life or death?

"This...? I suppose that's the only way!" Half-reluctant, Master Zhao handed the task over to his wife to execute.